Limerick lace

Nineteenth-century Limerick lace wedding veil

Limerick lace is an embroidered needle lace made in Limerick in Ireland.

It is formed on a mesh using one or both of two techniques:

• Tambour – where chain stitch is created using a hook.
• Needlerun – where stitches are darned onto the ground using a needle.

The lace was noted for its variety of delicate fillings, as many as 47 different ones being found in one collar. ^[1]

The industry was started in 1829 By Charles Walker. The industry was revived in the late 1880s.^[2]

When John F. Kennedy visited Limerick in 1963 he was presented with a lace christening robe.

Limerick Museum hold the largest collection of Limerick Lace in the country.

References

1. Pat Earnshaw. A Dictionary of Lace. Shire Publications. ISBN 0-85263-700-4.
2. http://www.limerick.ie/historicalresources/limerickarchives/limericklace